Last Updated on May 19, 2020, 7:45 AM AST by Anthony Morris
More than 20 earthquakes, some of them were perceptible, and a tornado which caused material damage had been reported this Sunday in eastern Cuba.
According to the National Center for Seismological Research (CENAIS), by 7:30 pm as per the local time, around 21 telluric movements were registered in the eastern part of the island, and “some of them were perceptible by the population,” in what is classified as “anomalous seismic activity.”
The earthquakes have been felt in the municipalities of Guamá, Palma Soriano, Contramaestre and Santiago de Cuba, Tercer Frente, in the province of Santiago de Cuba, in the municipalities of Media Luna, Bayamo and Bartolomé Masó, in the province of Granma, and in the city of Guantánamo in the province of the same name, reported CENAIS, which explains that so far no victims or material damage have been reported as a result of the quakes.
The largest of the tremors had a magnitude of 4.6 degrees and was recorded at 4:47 pm. It was located 20 kilometres south-southwest of the Santiago town of Chivirico, and just two hours later, a 4.2-magnitude aftershock was recorded. Both earthquakes are considered the seventh and eighth perceptible this year.
This seismicity points out CENAIS, “corresponds to an activation of a segment of the Oriente fault to the south of the Guamá municipality, in the province of Santiago de Cuba.”
The report concludes that both seismologists and government authorities and the Civil Defense “are monitoring and evaluating this anomalous seismic activity.”
The eastern Cuban zone faces these events more frequently, and the local experts have warned that these events may occur in any area of the country.
Around 70% of earthquakes which occur in Cuba are reported in the Oriente fault, located along the southeast coast of the island, and wherein 2018 there were 15 perceptible tremors.
This year’s first earthquake occurred on January 23 in the town of Caimanera, which is situated in Guantánamo, and had a magnitude of 4.2 on the Richter open scale, and five days later a strong 7.7 magnitude earthquake had hit and it had an epicentre in the Caribbean Sea.
Meanwhile, around 1 pm this Sunday a tornado occurred in Charrasco, in the municipality of Maisí, province of Guantánamo.
However, there were no reported victims from the storm, but the storm did cause material damage to both agriculture and homes.
Recovery work started after the tornado, as well as assessing the economic damages which it had caused.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
